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Farmall Distributor-What Am I Doing Wrong???

P

Pappy

Well-known Member
I am familiar with magnetos and distributors, but have a problem. I"m testing a Farmall 200 Distributor as a spare unit. I hook it up with a 12 volt coil and a 12 volt battery charger and I use the distributor points as a switch only. I can get a 3/8 inch blue spark (flame) from the coil wire to ground when I spin the distdributor by hand, but when I connect the coil wire to the center terminal of the distributor, then connect a spark plug wire to one of the spark plug terminals, I can only get a 1/16 inch weak orange spark to ground. I am loosing my spark within the distributor. The distributor has new points, new rotor, new cap, properly adjusted points, and is very clean. What am i missing?? I have the distributor mounted in a large vise with good ground. My battery charger negative is connected to the bottom flange of the distributor which is mounted in the vise. Maybe I am suffering from the CRS ailment. Any Thoughts will be appreciated. Like i said, it is a spare unit, but I would like to have it ready.
 
(quoted from post at 00:12:57 12/09/13) I am familiar with magnetos and distributors, but have a problem. I"m testing a Farmall 200 Distributor as a spare unit. I hook it up with a 12 volt coil and a 12 volt battery charger and I use the distributor points as a switch only. I can get a 3/8 inch blue spark (flame) from the coil wire to ground when I spin the distdributor by hand, but when I connect the coil wire to the center terminal of the distributor, then connect a spark plug wire to one of the spark plug terminals, I can only get a 1/16 inch weak orange spark to ground. I am loosing my spark within the distributor. The distributor has new points, new rotor, new cap, properly adjusted points, and is very clean. What am i missing?? I have the distributor mounted in a large vise with good ground. My battery charger negative is connected to the bottom flange of the distributor which is mounted in the vise. Maybe I am suffering from the CRS ailment. Any Thoughts will be appreciated. Like i said, it is a spare unit, but I would like to have it ready.
Click to expand...
re you absolutely sure that your 'test' direction of rotation is the same as in-tractor direction of rotation? Explain: If you turn it opposite the direction for which it was designed, it fires the coil when the rotor is in between cap posts, not when rotor is aligned with cap post.
 
Sounds like there is some kind of resistance in the rotor / cap. Maybe just manufactured poorly or maybe the cap is on crooked. Search the archives for john t"s distributor troubleshooting guide. It""ll come in handy.
 
I had a problem one time on an old set where the terminal/wire junction was corroded. You couldn't really see it until you pulled the boots off.

If the insulation is old the spark can punch through to the block or other metal but since you have it out on the bench that doesn't seem likely.
 
I had a rotor give me quite a problem this spring on my cub. I went and got an old brass one out of my old parts and no problem since. That rotor was less than one year old. Also have you tried a different plug ?
 
I have had a bad rotor new out of the box with no visual evidence of a fault. I would try a known good rotor and cap off another tractor and see what happens.
 
All of those test bench pieces have to be hooked up to the same ground spot so the discharge(spark) will happen.
 
You are correct. I was using a 6 inch vise mounted
to a steel work-bench. All connections to the vise
or distributor.
 
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